Carpe Noctem
by Knightmaremist
Summary: Lucian and my Mary Sue Hope exchange a truth in vow before her first kill as a Lycan.


Lucian wasn't the only one with a restless heart. I myself felt the pangs of despair and hopelessness when I realized that I, too, was of the species Lycan. But what else could I have asked? Maybe I was just a wayward crack-addicted vagabond on the street, but I didn't want to die. I knew I'd been meant for more; I was just going through a rough time. I needed Lucian's bite to save me.   
  
I'd lived underground amongst the drifters and rejects for nearly three years, having spent all 900 or so days completely strung out on my drug of choice. Well, I suppose it is closer to the truth to say the drug had chosen me. Either way, now that I was Lycan, I needed no drugs at all. I needed no "fixes" save only the thrill of the hunt and kill every 28 days. The lunar cycle now governed my life, as it did Lucian's. He'd been my dearest friend in all of this. I wasn't about to abandon him after Selene had slain Viktor, then took off with the half-breed. I would have called them traitors, except Lucian had once loved one of them... a Vampyre. It had happened so long ago... her brutal death at Viktor's hand, but it was fresh in Lucian's mind and heart even to this day. Once I'd made the metamorphosis that horrid event had also become engraved forever upon my soul. One thing about werewolves: we share collective, intense memories. I could feel Lucian's pain as though it were my own. I despised Viktor. I was grateful for his demise.   
  
It had been a thousand years. I wanted Lucian to move onward. I was in love with him, had been ever since the first day his crystal eyes had gazed upon mine. I believe he was ignorant of it, even though we shared many a secretive thought. We had always walked the same path of darkness in life. Now that I was Lycan, it was even more so. We were destined to be mates; his rule over the Lycan species of Underworld matched with my motherly instincts would have proven us to be the best Alpha and Beta wolves ever, among werefolk. Now that the war between Nos Feratu and Lycan had reached a stalemate, it seemed reasonable that Lucian might just want to settle down... with a woman who could love him, body and soul. That woman was me... Hope.   
  
I know, my namesake isn't very befitting, having met the worst of fates on the street. When I'd left my abusive husband, I had nothing. I became a nameless, faceless person in a dark city, having resorted to prostitution to stay alive. But then I met Lucian. He befriended me, provided for me, and saw to it that I never had to whore myself out again. But it was too late. I'd contracted AIDS by that time and was near my deathbed. Lucian shocked the hell out of me when he moved in for my jugular and sank in his teeth. I thought he was merely giving me a good-bye kiss. He ended up leaving a hell of a hickey and then when the next full moon came around, I realized what had happened. I hadn't known of Lucian's dark secret until the night I first changed. Now I finally understood the origin of those heightened senses of his.   
  
It all made perfect sense to me now. Even tonight, on All Hallows Eve, as we stood facing the pretentious mansion in which I'd resided with my monster of a husband, Lucian and I being together, as werefolk, made total sense. I felt his hand course over mine as we waited silently for the moon to rear its majestic face in the night. We'd transform soon, and soon I would deliver to my husband the fate he so deserved. He'd tried to kill me so many times; he cheated on me, forced me to perform favors for his friends, verbally assaulted me every chance he got. The only reason I'd stayed so long was because of the financial stability he provided. He saw to it that I had nothing without him. He owned me. But now, the tables had finally turned in my favor. Now was time to seize and claim ownership of this night... of my life.  
  
Ironically enough, tonight was to be my first kill. Lucian thought it would be easier for me this way. To kill an evil person would not be emotionally draining. Lucian never killed innocents either. He was a vigilante Lycan and sought only to slay those who really deserved it. I believe that was one more reason why I adored him so. I felt his fingers intertwine with mine. Then I heard the gentle sift of his long locks upon the breeze as he turned to face me.  
  
"Hope," he whispered softly.  
  
I turned and caught his magnetic gaze. "Yes?"  
  
"There is no turning back after this. I need to know that I made the right decision when I spared your life. I need to know you'll be happy like this," he persisted desperately, clutching my shoulder with his other inordinately strong hand.  
  
"Lucian, I've known only happiness since the day you found me. Why would you question it now?" I inquired, lifting my fingers to his pale face.  
  
"Because your heart betrays us. I can feel it. You're without life inside you on what is supposed to be such a grand night for you. Why the sadness?" He countered regretfully.  
  
I drew a deep breath. Could he truly not see what ghost had haunted me since our first encounter in that back alley? He was right. I had to tell him. I could no longer allow my heart to betray what was in my soul. Besides, he needed my love. I emphatically believed that.  
  
"Lucian, this isn't going to be easy for me," I began anxiously, my fingers trembling as they brushed across his pouting lips.   
  
He caught my other hand and pressed it against his palm, allowing his rough hulking fingers to stroke my knuckles. This was a good sign. He stared deeply into my eyes, sending me to a delightfully chilled place where shivers were welcome, where they made one feel alive again.   
  
"What is it, Hope? Tell me," he bade, commanding softly.   
  
I looked down, not able to meet his eyes fully, for they pierced through me so intensely it burned. "Lucien, I..." this was so hard. Too hard. I think the prospect of turning into a wolf and devouring my husband was more appealing. I was less terrified of that than I was of telling this man, this werewolf, that I loved him more than anything on earth.  
  
"Out with it, Hope, and look at me," Lucian ordered, his voice still raspy, soft, and warm.  
  
I did as he asked. I knew my eyes were glossed when they met his once again. He didn't seem a bit phased. He was expecting my tears, it seemed. As one trickled down my cheek, he reached up and cradled it in his palm, squeezing tightly. When he released his fist, I saw a delicate shard of crystal where the wetness had been. It was my teardrop... immortalized. For some reason, this made it damned near impossible NOT to tell him.  
  
"Lucian, I'm in love with you," I squeaked, my voice tapering off as I stifled an onslaught of more tears and sobs.  
  
He lowered his head and chuckled. Not the reaction I'd expected. But at least it wasn't "get the hell out of my face." We were off to a good start.  
  
"I know," he purred. "I've always known. But what saddens me is that you were unable to tell my feelings," he choked, still looking down.  
  
I felt a wave of adrenaline hit me. I wondered if it was the moon or what I wanted so badly for him to say.  
  
"Perhaps some thoughts are better left unheard until they are actually spoken," I offered, surprised by my astute wisdom.  
  
"Perhaps," Lucian agreed, looking upon me with a depth I'd never seen in him, and that was saying something, because this guy was the king of dark dreams.   
  
"So..." I pressed with a faint whisper.  
  
"So, I am fiercely in love with you, Hope. Why do you think I saved your life? I couldn't let you go. I was... selfish," he stammered.  
  
We were still holding hands. I squeezed his, smiling. "No," I affirmed, "HE is selfish," I said, turning my attention to the bastard's house again.  
  
"Yes, he is, and it is near your time, my dear," Lucian leaned in and whispered. "A kiss for good luck?" He added serenely.  
  
"A kiss to seal our love?" I asked whimsically, slowly meeting his eyes as he moved to face me, cupping my fiery cheeks in his nurturing hands.  
  
"A kiss to carpe noctum," he whispered feverishly, his eyes, still gazing but mere slits now as he lowered his lips to meet mine and savor the taste of desire in the moonlit night... our first kiss, on All Hallows Eve. A kiss to claim the night, a kiss before the kill. A kiss that signified our undying pact as children of the night... beings who literally ran with the wolves. Lycans. The alpha male and the beta female of the pack. Lucian and Hope... now shared but one beating heart, one transformed soul.   
  
Within his otherworldly, dark gothic kiss, I felt the first wave hit me. The moon was high upon us. The change, imminent. It was time, to settle the score, to claim my spiritual independence from the memory and stronghold of that evil man inside the house, time to... seize the night. 


End file.
